French
1766 Charleville Infantry Musket

- Popular with
the Sons of the American Revolution (SAR) Color Guards -

Introduced initially
in 1763, the new French Infantry Musket underwent a number of changes 3 years
later in 1766
including lightening the musket, reducing the size of the
lock, and utilizing the button-head ramrod design .
The
French main arsenal producing the 1766 model was the one at Charleville in North
Eastern
France in the Champagne-Ardenne region. Tens of thousands of this musket were
made for the royal army of France, however this was not its claim to fame.

In 1776, with the
revolution against British under way, the United States were desperate for
muskets.
That spring Congress sent Silas Deane to France to plead
for assistance in the form of arms, equipment, and financing.
Looking to
even the score against Britain, France came to the Americans side with
shiploads of muskets.
Because were not officially at war with Britain
until 1778, a fake corporation had to be set up to mask the French
government's direct involvement.
In addition, ship log
destinations were falsified to hid the fact the muskets were being shipped to
American ports.
Because of the British presence on the high seas,
some French ships had to sail to the West Indies, drop off their cargo, and
American vessels then picked the muskets up.

In studying the
numerous surviving muskets of French manufacture but with U.S. surcharge
markings, the vast majority are the 1766 Model with the button style
ramrod.
Contrary to popular belief, the flared trumpet style
ramrod was not used with the 1766 model.
So dominant was the presence of
the 1766 model in the American forces, that when U.S. began to mass
manufacture its own army muskets, the first model off the arsenal at
Springfield in 1795 was an exact copy of the 1766 Charleville.

While the 1777 model
began to be issued to French Regiments almost immediately, the 1766 model
continued to be carried by some French soldiers all the way up into the time
of Napoleon.

Battle of Guilford
Courthouse, 15 March 1781 (Center of Military History)

Specifications

This reproduction of
a 1766 Charleville Infantry Musket has a .69 calibre, 44 3/4 inch long, round barrel
that is made of tempered seamless carbon
steel (type:BS970 no.080M40)
with a tight
breech plug.
The lock is made with strong durable springs
and has a case-hardened frizzen cover (hammer) that throws good
sparks.
The Charlieville musket's total length is 60 inches and weighs 10
pounds.
We use
a industrial case-hardening factory process that makes sparking both more
reliable and longer lasting.
Presently no other musket provider uses
this technique.

As with all our
other flintlock black powder muzzleloaders, the vent is not drilled (read details below) so we can ship easily to your door
throughout North America and to Europe and the UK.
Aside from that they
are exactly like
the originals.
A fine addition to any collection.

If upon receiving
your musket you are not completely happy with your purchase, you may return it
for a refund.
All we ask is you cover the shipping costs. It has to be returned in two weeks of receipt and be in its original state (unaltered and unmodified).

Non-Firing
State

We sell historically
accurate muskets in a non-firing state.
This allows us to comply
with local, state, national and international firearms regulations.